AS the Festival of Lights draws near, many Malaysian families celebrating Deepavali are facing dark times.

Despite the World Bank forecasting a positive GDP growth of 5.2% for the third quarter, the average Malaysian continues to struggle with inflation, which hit 3.7% in August, compared with 3.2% in July.

Crane maintenance technician L. Ganesan, 37, from Klang, said Deepavali is a stressful time for him as he is hard-pressed trying to figure out how to make some extra money for his family during the festive season.

His company no longer offers overtime hours for its employees as part of budget cuts.

“There has been no overtime for the last three months. So, I have to make do with my basic salary.

“This Deepavali is going to be tough. With the price increase in goods and other products, I have to be careful with my spending. I will also have to find a way to make some extra money for my family,” he said.

Little or no festive cheer

For taxi driver R. Ravichandran, 54, and his family, Deepavali has no meaning other than it being another public holiday. His business has been hit hard by e-hailing companies Uber and Grab.

“It has been tough for the past year, since the government encouraged people to drive Uber and Grab in the Budget 2017 announcement last October. It has been killing the taxi industry and its drivers.

“On most days now, I get only one customer. That gets me about RM15. I pay RM20 for petrol and RM30 to rent the taxi. What income do I make?” he said, opening his wallet to show only a few ringgit inside.

Ravichandran said he and his wife are struggling to feed their three children, let alone buy them new clothes for the celebration.

“I now send my children to school with plain bread. No money to spend on jam or margarine.”

Even for middle-income families, Deepavali this year will be an exercise in thrift as festive budgets are slashed.

Primary schoolteacher J. Sunthari, 32, from Damansara began saving up for Deepavali since May, but she has slashed her family’s festive budget by more than half as a safety net.

“I spent RM500 last year on shopping. This year, my limit is RM200. I think it will be better to save the money for more important things in this slow economy,” she said.

“Our open house is only for family members. We are not making a lot of sweets or cookies this year,” she told The Malaysian Insight.

Hard to cut back

While many are making a conscious effort to cut back, some said it is extremely difficult to slash Deepavali spending as the festival and celebrations often involve extended families.

For private university lecturer S. Anita, 41, Deepavali this year will see some 15 in-laws celebrating the festival in her home.

“This year we are hosting them, so we are spending more. I don’t think we really have a choice when it comes to spending for the festive season,” said the mother-of-one.

She said she found that “almost everything” has become more expensive, namely imported items like spices and ghee.

“So, I buy spices in bulk from wholesalers. I buy for my siblings, too. It is cheaper that way.”

Anita, who will only shop for perishables closer to Deepavali which falls on October 18, said she expected mutton to become pricier this year, despite the meat being a controlled-price item.

According to the Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry, local and imported mutton is a controlled price item during the enforcement period from October 13 to 22.

The wholesale price for local bone-in mutton will be RM37 and RM38 per kilo for the peninsula and Penang. The retail prices are RM40 and RM41 respectively.

For imported bone-in mutton and lamb, the prices are RM19 (peninsula), RM28 (Sarawak) and RM29 (Sabah and Labuan). The retail prices are RM24 (peninsula), RM30 (Sarawak) and RM31 (Sabah and Labuan).

Regardless of the ruling, Anita said she still anticipated that some traders will take advantage of the demand to raise their prices closer to Deepavali.

“But I will still buy some,” she said.

“We only serve mutton once a year, at Deepavali.” – October 14, 2017.